Stephen and Tabitha King give $1M to fund Bangor psychiatric hospital build-out

Courtesy / Northern Light Acadia Hospital Northern Light Acadia Hospital, in Bangor, currently has 100 inpatient beds. But the mental health care provider can't use them all because of space configurations.

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By William Hall

A Bangor psychiatric hospital in the midst of a big build-out has received a big gift from the Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation.

The $1 million gift to Northern Light Acadia Hospital will support construction of a new pediatric wing and renovation of current space, allowing all patients to have private, single-occupancy rooms.

The donation will also help upgrade Acadia’s outpatient pediatric services, expansion of its geriatric treatment and research program, and the hospital’s workforce development, according to a news release Tuesday.

Acadia Hospital, one of Maine’s few mental health care providers with inpatient services, announced plans last year to construct 50 new patient rooms and convert another 50 existing semi-private rooms to private ones.

The 30-year-old facility, at 268 Stillwater Ave., currently has a total of 100 inpatient beds. But Acadia can’t use all of them because of the way rooms are configured.

The care of many patients requires a private room, which makes 20 to 25 beds unavailable for use each day, the hospital said last year.

Besides Acadia, part of the Brewer-based Northern Light Health system, there are three other psychiatric hospitals in Maine: Spring Harbor Hospital, a part of the MaineHealth system, in Westbrook; the Riverview Psychiatric Center, a state facility in Augusta; and the state-operated Dorothy Dix Psychiatric Center in Bangor.

Stephen and Tabitha King said, “We are pleased to contribute to Northern Light’s Acadia For All campaign, which will significantly expand Acadia Hospital’s delivery of behavioral health services to young people, both locally and across the state.

“We are well aware that there are many children and adolescents who desperately need access to residential programs and services. We hope others in the community will join us by contributing to Acadia’s expansion.”

Scott Oxley, president of Northern Light Acadia Hospital, said, “This is an incredible gift to the people of Maine. We are grateful to Stephen and Tabitha King for their support to help Acadia Hospital increase access to behavioral health services.

“To know that there are young people in emergency departments across the state waiting for us to have an opening so they can get the help they desperately need is heartbreaking. The new pediatric wing at Acadia Hospital will greatly enhance our ability to serve Maine’s most vulnerable population.”